Cabin Fever
by polaricecat
Summary: Once the curse breaks, Regina is transported to a secluded cabin in the forest outside of Storybrooke. Meanwhile, something...peculiar has happened to Emma, who has no choice but to follow her instincts and go to Regina for help. Set a few weeks after the curse breaks. Dark/feral Emma (sometimes). Contains smut in later chapters.
1. Chapter 1

**Title: Cabin Fever  
Rating: M  
Summary/Prompt: Once the curse breaks, Regina is transported to a secluded cabin in the forest outside of Storybrooke. Meanwhile, something...peculiar has happened to Emma, who has no choice but to follow her instincts and go to Regina for help. Set a few weeks after the curse breaks. Dark/feral Emma (sometimes). Contains smut in later chapters.**

**A/N: Let me just tell you that this is going to be a long story (for me at least). I've never written a multi-chapter fic before so I really hope you enjoy this! I've written most of it, so updates should come quickly.**

**For powersalliknow and my friend!anon.**

* * *

Regina slowly sinks into the bath, the scalding heat flushing her skin. She sighs as she lets her head loll back, her hair floating in the water. She sinks lower, happy that she has found a way to relax without death threats being thrown at her.

The curse had been broken two weeks earlier by none other then that snarling blonde idiot. _Who just can't stop taking what is mine._ Regina thinks in petty annoyance as she lazily soaps up her body, scents of lemon and lavender overwhelming her senses.

Ever since the so-called Sheriff had implemented herself in both Henry and the Mayor's lives, Regina has been ridiculously on edge. Miss Swan has always been aggravating, but her faults have seemed to hold more weight as the days went on and Henry grew more attached to her. It breaks Regina's heart, and she just wishes that Henry would come to his senses and realize that - unlike the blond - Regina will always be there for him. She will always be his mother. But that was something that the Sheriff had constantly tried to change. Because Emma was able to give Henry a family, a real, blood-related family, which Regina knew she never even had a chance at. And so from the beginning, the blonde always infuriated Regina, always threatening to undermine her position as mayor, as a mother, and as a caretaker.

And Miss Swan's breaking of the brunette's carefully constructed curse was just the tipping point. Thank the _gods_ Regina had created a sort of fail-safe if the curse had been broken or something had gone amiss.

Which it had.

Which meant that all of a sudden Regina had found herself transported in a cloud of indigo smoke outside of a very ... _quaint _log cabin. She would be lying if she said her heart didn't sink drastically when she arrived on the path leading to the small, barely two-story house. It was obviously old and run down on the outside, but on the inside Regina was pleasantly surprised to see a lack of dust as well as a fully stocked kitchen.

After scouring the downstairs area for all the necessary supplies she would need to make this place her home for the time being, Regina had slowly walked upstairs, feeling the exhaustion settling into her bones. The top floor held a single bedroom, which looked more like an attic to Regina, and a small bathroom. It was rustic, as were all other amenities in the cabin, but the brunette figured that it would have to do for the time being. The queen bed looks so very inviting, as the previous day had been absolutely emotionally exhausting - to say the least - and goddamn it if Regina just wants to sleep. Her son - her _own son_ - once again wants nothing to do with her. She reasons it was because of the poison, but the apple turnover was meant for the infuriating blonde, not for her own son. But she couldn't have let Henry seen how devastated she was that he didn't realize that. And thankfully the curse, which seemed like it had quite a mind of its own, moved her quietly from one prison to the next.

_Although_, the brunette realizes as she gets out of the bath, watching as the murky water slowly spins down the drain with a gurgle, _it's starting to feel more like home_. For Regina, home has always been where her heart is. First it was with her dear, sweet father. Then poor Daniel, then innocent Tink, and then her darling Henry. And now... well now Regina tends to thinks of home as just someplace she feels safe. And although the four rustic walls of the log cabin are not the most elegant, she decides that they will have to do. After all, where else could she call home? She doesn't have many options. She doesn't have _any_ options, she soon comes to realize. She supposes her former mansion has been foully disgraced with vandalism, which doesn't bother her much. The empty house holds enough bad memories and lonely nights to last many lifetimes. So she resorts to calling this cabin a home for the time being. After all, home is someplace where Miss Swan can't touch her and her happiness.

* * *

It has been two weeks since the cloud of magic swept through the town that Regina used to call her own. The Mayor - or former mayor, as the brunette reasonably suspects the democratic system has been overturned by zealous monarchs - has been coped up for days with just her thoughts for company.

She spends the long hours reading the many novels the curse decided to thoughtfully leave in the cabin, yet Regina finds it hard to concentrate for long periods of time. The silence is... well it is silent. _Too_ silent. It's disconcerting and Regina can't help but sometimes feel like the walls of the log cabin are slowly closing in on her.

It doesn't help that a few days ago the first snow of the year had fallen (which Regina dryly thinks is an ironic, long-awaited sign). But along with fluffy powder comes bitter winds, which, for the most part, are forcing Regina to stay inside. So she stocks up on firewood, gathers blankets and pillows to create a makeshift couch in front of the fire, finds a few more books to read, and uproots all the tea she can find and prepares to hole up for the next few weeks until the bloodthirsty town calms down. She knows she's in for a somewhat boring ... _adventure_ (if she even wants to go so far as to call it that) in her little cabin, but she reluctantly supposes the quiet will do her good.

Yet however much she loathes to admit it, as she drifts off to sleep in front of the burning fireplace, she can't stop herself from thinking about how much more _interesting_ the cabin would be with the added presence of the blonde and her damning curls and bright green eyes and childish retorts. After all, Regina rationalizes as her conscious slowly fades out, her life is quite dull without the constant bickering and complaining from Miss Swan.

So Regina suspects it's fate, or some other god-forsaken deity, that brings a disheveled and fiercely angry blond to her doorstep late that night.

* * *

**A/N: Thank you to powersalliknow for kickstarting this and helping me brainstorm as well as plan out the rest of this story. The next few chapters will all be Emma centered and will definitely be longer and will delve deeper into the plot. Chapter 2 will be up in a day or two once I review it.**

**You can PM me or talk to me on tumblr at 'polaricecat' if you have any comments or suggestions!**

**xox - L**


	2. Chapter 2

**Title: Cabin Fever  
Rating: M  
Summary/Prompt: Once the curse breaks, Regina is transported to a secluded cabin in the forest outside of Storybrooke. Meanwhile, something...peculiar has happened to Emma, who has no choice but to follow her instincts and go to Regina for help. Set a few weeks after the curse breaks. Dark/feral Emma (sometimes). Contains smut in later chapters.**

**A/N: Thanks again to powersalliknow.**

* * *

Emma has never needed an explanation from Regina. The blond likes to think that she understands the mayor. Emma knows what it's like to not have anybody, and she knows what it's like to grow too attached to something you love. And she understands that a broken heart is the most dangerous one. It can drive people to do insanely maddening things, to flip worlds and people upside down. And Emma supposes that's exactly what has happened to Regina. The blond doesn't know the specifics, but she knows Regina well enough to detect the subtle flashes of pain in her brown eyes when Henry calls Emma 'Ma.'

If Emma were to be honest, she wants to yell at her kid all the time for how he acted - and still acts - on matters concerning Regina, his _mother_. There is _nothing _more painful than loosing your child, the blond thinks. And although Regina and Emma lost Henry at different times in different ways, the poisoned turnover creates a bond of familiar loss between the two women that Emma supposes will always be there. Because she saw the look of pure devastation on Regina's face when Henry flatlined at the hospital. She heard Regina's sobs as they mirrored her own. Henry had quickly become the center of Emma's life, yet he would always be the center of Regina's. And when she had pressed her lips to Henry's forehead, she could feel Regina's iron grip on her forearm, willing her, urging her, to save _their_ son.

But when Henry's eyes flash open and he sits up, gasping for air, Emma can feel Regina start to crumble. Her façade fades away and all that is left is a loving mother. And so when a swirling indigo cloud surrounds a startled Regina, Emma, for once, lets her go.

* * *

When the curse breaks, Emma is suddenly busier than ever. Things are going crazy at the station; there are riots that, more often than not, turn violent; there are angry kings, angry people, angry _everyone. _Emma thinks she herself may soon top everyone on the anger scale because she just found her happy ending, and now she has to find everyone else's. Mary Margret, or Snow, or Mom, or whatever Emma tends to call her these days, pushes the blond to help "Restore happiness!" Snow's sweet sounding voice reverberates constantly in Emma's head and she just wants it _out_ because she's so stressed all of the time. There are children to reunite with their parents, court cases to watch over, people to protect, streets to patrol - and Emma doesn't know if she can do it all by herself.

She's at the diner one afternoon when the thought hits her. She feels so _stupid_, because in this unstable time the budget is pretty much unlimited, at least until there is a newly formed democratic system to deal with the laws and banks and money. So Emma decides to try to find someone to work with her. She had Ruby work for her once, so she supposes, as she walks over to the leggy brunette, that Ruby would work for her again.

"Hey Rubes." Emma says tiredly, sitting down in front of Ruby.

Ruby cringes, "Oh, uh hey Emma, I didn't see you there." The two women haven't seen each other since the day before the curse broke, and Ruby suddenly seems much more interested in cleaning the counter tops than talking to Emma.

"Ruby, are you alright?" Emma asks, her eyes filling with concern.

The brunette sighs. "You don't know who I am, do you." She says with disdain, self-loathing apparent on her striking features.

"Ah." _So that's why she's acting weird._ "Well I kind of guessed that you're Little Red Riding Hood? I mean with the name 'Ruby,' and you wear red all the time and you live with your grandmother..." Emma grins sheepishly, shrugging her shoulders.

Ruby scrunches up her nose in distaste, and looks around the diner nervously. "We can't do this here." She mutters, pulling the blond into the storage room in the back of the small diner. "Em, it's a little more complicated than you think. I'm... uh well.."

Emma rolls her eyes. "Rubes, spit it out. Whoever you are is fine with me. I mean, in the past _day_ I've dealt with murderous kings, angry trolls, and fucking _fairies_, for christ's sake." she says in disbelief. "I think I'll be fine with whoever else you are." She says encouragingly.

"Emma, I'm serious. Because it's not a 'who' that you should be concerned with, it's a 'what.'"

"Uh..." Emma trails off. "I'm not quite following you," she looks up questioningly at the brunette. "What do you mean?"

Ruby rolls her eyes. "Emma. Think about it. There's an awfully big piece missing from my story. Did you ever think about the wolf from my story?" The brunette says quietly.

"You mean like the wolf that ate your grandmother?" Emma asks quizzically. "But I thought Granny was your grandmother? And she's alive so..." Emma thinks for a moment. "Oh shit, then where's the wolf?" She whispers loudly.

"That's what I'm trying to tell you," hisses Ruby. "I'm not just Red, or Ruby or whatever. Emma, I'm the wolf too."

Emma looks at her, her brow furrowed in question. "So... you're like a werewolf or something?" Ruby nods as the blond thinks for a moment. "Are you going to kill anyone or harm anyone or anything like that?" Emma asks easily.

"Uh - I, what? No! Of course not!" Ruby sputters, thrown off by Emma's question.

Emma claps her hands together. "Good. Then how would you feel about joining the team and being my new deputy?" An easy smile adorns her face as she waits for Ruby's answer.

Ruby laughs at Emma's neutral reaction. "Ok, sure." She says, smiling.

Emma feels an enormous wave of relief flow through her. She can _finally_ have some time to herself, she thinks hopefully. Because she does not want to spend another night in her apartment with her parents, who seem to 'find each other' every other night. She doesn't want to hear _anything_ anymore, and she desperately hopes that Henry, who sleeps on the other side of the apartment, hasn't heard anything either. With a newfound hope of peace and quiet, Emma leaves the dinner, grabbing the local newspaper on the way out.

When the blond gets home she immediately begins to boil a pot of water for tea. As much as she loves it, coffee is meant for the morning, so tea will have to suffice in the afternoon. She drops in a tea bag and settles down on the couch to scan the newspaper for house listings. She knows there will be advertisements for open houses and rentals, because everyone is still in the process of rearranging themselves. People are finding new family members, leaving their cursed memories and old houses behind.

Before she can get to the real estate section, a bold article title catches her eye. **_"Mayor Mills' Suspicious Disappearance Continues to Cause Unease."_** The blond is hit with a surprising amount of guilt. To be completely honest, she hasn't thought of the mayor in a few days. Yet she feels the unmistakable rush of fear as she thinks of the Mayor's fate. Emma does know the brunette well enough to feel comfortable that Regina is safe. She has to be. She just hopes that the brunette has enough common sense to stay out of danger - preferably for a long time - until the people of Storybrook calm down and stop screaming for an execution.

* * *

As the next few days pass, Emma settles into a routine. She finally finds a small, two bedroom apartment that she now shares with Henry, even though he seems to spend more nights at her parents' place than at Emma's. She knows it's her fault; she's working long hours and doesn't get back from the station until after midnight, and supposes that in their post curse-breaking world it'll have to do.

She's on a night shift in the station when the emergency line rings. She sighs tiredly then answers. "This is the Sheriff's Department, Emma Swan speaking. Please state your name and emergency." She says robotically. As much as she loves her job and helping the town, she really does need to go home and get some sleep.

"Hi Emma!" Says a familiar voice, "It's Ella!"

"Uh... Ella? Do I know you?" Emma asks quizzically, not recognizing the voice on the other line. "What's your emergency?"

The feminine voice laughs. "Oh! I forgot, you don't know our names from the Fairytale Land. It's Ashley! You know? We met when I was pregnant and you helped me with my baby?"

"Oh." Emma pauses, shaking her head and letting out a strained sigh. _These damn fairytale characters are going to drive me insane. _"Yes, I remember you. I hope you and your baby are doing well. But did you have an emergency?"

"Oh! Right, well I was just sleeping when a long howl woke me up, which isn't too strange but it sounded really close. And the same thing happened last night. Maybe you should check it out? I was just concerned, you know, for small children and cats and dogs and the like. It's probably just a stray dog or something, but I wanted to let you know."

"Alright, I'll see what I can do about it." Emma says, "Thank you for your concern Ashley- uh, Ella."

She hangs up with a tired sigh. Since she hasn't done her nightly street patrols yet, she supposes she might as well go early. She grabs the keys to her cruiser off of her desk and bundles up, wrapping a scarf around her neck and tugging a knitted hat over her unruly curls.

She walks out of the station and gets into the cruiser parked out front. It's a monotonous routine that she seldom finds solace in, but tonight seems to be an exception. She needs this, she realizes. She needs to loose herself in the cold, bitter silence.

The nightly patrols she had instigated since the breaking of the curse don't seem to be wholly necessary, but she hasn't deemed them unnecessary either. Two nights ago she found a passed out Leroy on someone's doorstep, and the night before that she broke up a group of drunk rioters and sent them all home. She guesses that this night will be no different.

The night patrols scare her though, if she's being honest. The cold winds, the dead streets, the unknown shadows in bushes and behind trees - that's what scares her most. People she can deal with, she had plenty of experience as a bounty hunter back in Boston, but she knows she needs to push through her fear and keep up her routine.

She likes the fear though, the white hot flash that sends a jolt through her body, and she guesses that that's how adrenaline junkies feel. Because Emma realizes that she is becoming numb, she is just passing through life, moving through the motions, and at least when she feels fear she feels _something. _Emma rolls her eyes at herself. She's being an idiot, she knows. She just likes the release of doing something, she hates being cooped up in the station all night, waiting for calls.

She makes her way around the quiet town, streets dead and pitch black where the streetlights steady beams don't reach.

She drives past the florist, the local supermarket, a general store, and a few apartments until she gets to the quieter neighborhoods. She parks the cruiser, figuring that she'll have a better chance at finding a stray animal if she's on foot.

Walking down the street she pulls her jacket tighter to her body, hoping to preserve some of her body heat. She's _freezing_, and hopes that she catches this damn dog soon because she does not want to be outside any longer than she has to.

She wonders if Henry is warm where he is. Snow's apartment has been having heating issues and she just hopes Henry is safe. Emma misses him, she misses how easy it is to be around her son.

Emma continues walking, stopping briefly to glance into a few alleyways for a stray animal. As she's walking she hears a noise behind her and whips around. All that escapes is a whimper as a scream catches in her throat, her eyes growing wide with fear. Because standing in the eerie yellow glow of the streetlight is an angry, snarling white wolf.

* * *

**A/N: Writing is hard, but I love to push myself. So I'll try to get the next chapter done and uploaded as soon as I can. **

**Feel free to let me know what you think of this, any speculations, or any direction(s) you would be interested in seeing it going. I've thoroughly planned most of it but am definitely open to suggestions because you guys are the ones who are reading it! You can always PM me (or talk to me on tumblr at 'polaricecat') if you have any comments/suggestions/prompts!**

**xox - L**


	3. Chapter 3

**Title: Cabin Fever  
****Rating: M  
****Summary/Prompt: Once the curse breaks, Regina is transported to a secluded cabin in the forest outside of Storybrooke. Meanwhile, something...peculiar has happened to Emma, who has no choice but to follow her instincts and go to Regina for help. Set a few weeks after the curse breaks. Dark/feral Emma (sometimes). Contains smut in later chapters.**

**A/N: Sorry that there aren't any Swan queen interactions yet. This is an all Emma chapter again. I need to establish the plot and situation before anything else happens :) Hope you enjoy!**

* * *

_Emma continues walking, stopping briefly to glance into a few alleyways for a stray animal. As she's walking she hears a noise behind her and whips around. All that escapes is a whimper as a scream catches in her throat, her eyes growing wide with fear. Because standing in the eerie yellow glow of the streetlight is an angry, snarling white wolf._

* * *

"Holy shit!" Emma squeaks, her breathing growing quicker as she feels a sharp wave of cold fear shoot through her body. She's heard about situations like this, about people coming face to face with wild animals. She wracks her brain for information, trying to figure out what to do. The wolf is a good ten feet away from her, but her body is in shock as her mind attempts to process what she's seeing, her heart beating loudly in her head. She backs up, stumbling on the curb of the sidewalk, tripping in the process and landing hard on her back.

"Oh god, oh _god_." She hears herself say as her heart continues to thump loudly in her ears. She's shaking now, and she doesn't know whether it's from the cold winter night or the large wolf in front of her. The wolf stands still, eyes piercing Emma's sprawled figure. Slowly, it takes a step towards her. Emma suddenly remembers that she has her night stick on her. But as she reaches towards her waist, her hand only hits her leather belt. "Oh fuck... shit!" Emma mutters while glancing to her left, her breath coming in quick pants. She gulps as she realizes that she forgot both her gun and nightstick in the car.

Ruling out all methods of fighting the wolf, should it choose to attack her, Emma realizes the only option she has left it to run. She glances to her right and sees an alleyway that she knows leads to the next street over. She looks back over at the wolf, who has gotten closer now.

"Ok, you got this." She murmurs to herself, prepping for what she's about to do. "It's your only option." With trepidation she pushes herself back on to her feet so that she's crouching. Holding her breath she slowly counts to three. _One... two...three._

On three, Emma jumps up and sprints to her right, rounding the corner of the building and into an alleyway. She stumbles at first, but catches herself with her hands. She rights herself and runs further into the alley as fast as she can. But once she's further in the alleyway, she sees something that makes her heart suddenly dip low in her chest.

There's a _fence_.

A ten foot tall, wooden picket fence. She scans the dark area between the two building on either side of her. Seeing a metal dumpster, she quickly moves into action. Pushing as hard as she can she hears a loud screech as the dumpster tries to keep a firm hold on the ground. With a painful groan she shoves the dumpster again as hard as she can, sweat starting to shine on her face from the overexertion. _Come on, come on!_ She thinks hurriedly. Suddenly Emma hears a short bark, and then the unmistakable sounds of the wolf running after her. Her heart beats uncontrollably in her chest, fear sinking low in her stomach. She chances a glance behind her, but immediately regrets it when she sees the wolf running towards her and the fence. With a forceful yell she pushes the dumpster against the fence, and scrambles onto it. The wolf is below her now, and begins circling, trying to figure out a way to get to Emma.

The blond glances at the wolf again and grabs the splintering edges of the fence, hoisting herself up. Her hips rest against the dull points at the top and she's about to swing herself over to the other side when she hears a bark and feels a sharp pain in her calf. She hears the unmistakable sound of ripping denim and lets out a muffled yelp, quickly scrambling over the fence.

She lets out a pained gasp as she lands hard in a shallow puddle on the other side, a sharp pain shooting up her shins upon impact. She takes a step forward but her legs buckle, and she barely catches herself on her already injured hands and knees before she lands in the foully smelling ice water.

She breathes hard as the pain starts to kick in, the adrenaline in her body starting to die down. Rolling her neck, she's thankful that she didn't hit her head in her escape. But her calf is throbbing, and when she reaches down to touch the scrape through her ripped jeans, her hand comes away streaked with blood.

The bitter wind starts to whip around her hair, and she shivers as she feels the breeze through the rips. She looks down at her legs. Her jeans are wet from the puddle and dark with mud. _And blood_, she thinks feverishly. If the throbbing pain is anything to go by, than she doesn't want to see the extent of her injuries until she is somewhere safe. She carefully stands up, reaching out to the building on her left side as her vision dances, her head swimming and her stomach lurching with nausea.

She definitely cannot go back to her car, in case the wolf is still there. Instead, Emma slowly makes her way out of the alleyway and onto the deserted street with only one thought circling her mind as she starts walking. _I need to get back to the station._

* * *

Emma limps towards the station, walking over the freshly cut grass as the dark blue sky slowly begins to get lighter.

She glances at the newly placed sign on the lawn. Regina had wanted her to give the building a slogan, which Emma thought was downright stupid. The formidable mayor had given her few options, so Emma chose the simplest one. The newly painted sign read _"People Protecting People._" Emma rolled her eyes, wincing as she put too much weight onto her bad ankle. _No one said anything about animals, _the sheriff thought bitterly. She knows its part of her job though, keeping everyone calm and safe while sacrificing her own personal safety. But it's what she signed up to do, and as she continues walking up the cement walkway she reasons that she's had worse injuries during her bounty hunting days.

When Emma reaches the double doors of the building she fumbles for her keys, her heart dropping suddenly when she can't find them. But she quickly locates them in her inner jacket pocket and unlocks one of the doors, wincing in pain as the cold key presses sharply into her aching palms. Shivering, she enters the building and locks the doors behind her.

Emma walks straight to the cabinet where she knows the first aid kit is, thankful that she had Ruby restock it after the last riot mishap. She opens it, still careful of her smarting palms, and finds a roll of gauze and a roll of medical tape. She brings it over to small bathroom, deciding to deal with her hands before she takes a look at her throbbing leg injuries.

Emma carefully takes off her hat, her scarf, and then her jacket, frowning at the half-dried mud on the leather that she had failed to notice earlier. She tries to wipe it off but only succeeds in smearing it more. She supposes that she'll have to get it dry cleaned. She sets her jacket down on the toilet seat and pushes up the sleeves of her wool sweater. She's overheating now that she's not outside, but she knows that she should stay warm because her body is still in shock. She turns the hot water on and gingerly places her hands beneath the gentle stream. She hisses as the water hits her palms, but then sighs in relief as they start to numb. She grabs a small piece of gauze and runs it under the water, wetting it before she softly swipes it over both of her palms, wiping away gravel, dirt, and small spots of blood. After she dries off her hands and applies antiseptic cream to the scrapes, she wraps up her hand. She clenches and unclenches her fingers, wincing as the bandages rub against her tender palms, but very thankful that she didn't jam - or even worse, break - any of her fingers.

The blond collects the small pile of clothes on the toilet seat and exits the bathroom. She grabs the rest of the first aid kid and slowly limps over to her desk, her ankle still throbbing. She gingerly sits down in her swivel chair, glad to be off of her bruised ankle and smarting calf. She closes her eyes and sighs. _Time to address the more... painful injuries_, she thinks begrudgingly. She's _exhausted_ at the moment, and her struggle from the alleyway back to the station did not help at all. She opens one of her lower desk drawers, placing one foot on the wooden drawer. Her jeans are all torn up around the injury, and she can see sizable spots of blood dotting the rough blue fabric. She tries rolling her jeans up, but her efforts are fruitless as she soon realizes that the ankles of the pants are too skinny to get over her calves without causing any more damage to her injury.

Trying a different method, Emma unbuttons her jeans, cursing herself at the fact that she decided to wear one of her favorite - and tightest - pair. But as she starts to pull them down, she realizes that with the mud, water, and blood, her jeans are already ruined anyways and that pulling them off would take a lot longer than if she cut them instead.

Emma grabs the medical scissors from the first aid kid, and with a sigh she begins cutting her jeans, starting from the rips on her shins all the way up to her waist. She repeats the process on the other leg until she can safely peel the wet jeans from her body.

She shivers at the sudden exposure to the cool air, now only clad in a sweater and a plain black thong. She looks down at her leg and finds it swollen and bruised around the lacerations. On the outside of her calf are two long scrapes, about the length of her hand. She grabs a water bottle that was sitting on her desk and wets a gauze pad. She hisses as the water stings, but she needs to wash away the blood. When her leg is relatively cleaner, she's relieved to see that the cuts aren't as deep as she thought and will not require stitches. They're relatively shallow, but will probably leave a nasty scar.

Emma feels a sudden wave of fatigue hit her, and she glances at the clock. Three in the morning. She groans, figuring she'll only get about four hours of sleep, if she's lucky. With a pained sigh she puts antibiotic cream on her cuts and finishes bandaging her leg. She opens up a different drawer in her desk, pulling out a pair of loose yoga pants so she doesn't irritate her leg. She bunches up her scarf and uses it as a pillow, falling asleep on her desk minutes after she sets her head down.

* * *

_"Do you you know what you are?" A voice whispers seductively in her ear. Emma trembles, desire coursing through her like a drug. She doesn't care what the mysterious voice has to say, only that she keeps hearing it. The dulcet tones continue as they taunt her. "Oh Emma." They say teasingly, the flirtatious tone continuing to whisper softly in her ear. "You'll never know, will you." The blonde can hear a smile in the voice. She tries to turn around but something is stopping her. She feels a familiar sharp burst of fear travel quickly throughout her body as she realizes that she can't move._

_"What are you doing to me?" She asks, growling through gritted teeth._

_"Oh my dear, lovely girl," the voice taunts again, "You'll just have to wait and see." The voice lets out a soft chuckle, which morphs into a beautiful yet haunting laugh._

_Suddenly, Emma finds that she can move and whips her head around, but only manages to catch a glimpse of a sweet smile as remnants of laughter hang in the air._

* * *

"Well you totally look like shit."

Emma wakes with a start, Ruby's voice startling the blond out of her dream. Emma shakes her head to clear away the remnants of the strange visions. She can't remember what she dreamt about, but she knows that it must have been interesting. She yawns widely, wiping her eyes to clear the sleep from them as she sits up in her chair, cracking her neck. "Ugh. I _feel_ like shit. Thanks for reminding me, Rubes." Emma says sarcastically.

"No problem, boss." Ruby replies with a wink. "Any drama-rama last night?"

Emma stalls for a moment. "Well..."

But before she gets a chance to say anything, Ruby jumps in. "Oh, was it Leroy? Or maybe Billy? You know, Billy used to be a mouse and I think he likes stealing things, so you should probably check that out."

Emma raises her eyebrow at the boisterous brunette. "No Ruby, there was none of that. There was actually a disturbance call. It seems like Ashley - err, Ella? Cinderella? Well anyways, she reported an animal or something over by her house and I went to go check it out. Got a little scuffed up," Emma lifts up her hands, showing Ruby the bandages, "But other than that it was a fairly quiet night."

"Good!" Ruby says perkily. "Ah, shit. I left my phone at the dinner, do you mind filing these away?" She hold up a small stack of labeled manilla folders. "There's not a lot of them, they're just the arrest cases that you wanted me to alphabetize."

Emma groans internally, dreading the weight she'll have to put on her sore ankle. "Sure, Ruby." She mumbles.

"Thanks Em!" Ruby calls over her shoulder, already on her way out of the station. "I'll be back in a few minutes!"

Emma sighs, then takes a deep breath as she stands up, testing her balance and pain levels. Her ankle is not as painful as she thought it would be, but then again, she hasn't walked yet. Lifting her right leg, she rolls her ankle, wincing at the stiffness she feels. She doesn't know whether to be glad or annoyed that both her cuts and her sprained ankle are on the same leg. She reasons that at least this way she'll have one good leg to put most of her weight on.

Emma grabs the stack of files off of her desk and makes her way over to the file cabinet on the opposite wall. She opens the cabinet drawer and puts the files in their appropriate location. She's limping back over to her desk when she hears the front door of the building open and close.

"Hey Em, it's me, I'm back!" Ruby calls, "I got you some food and a coffee because you looked pretty tired and you're probably hungry, so - " She stops as she sees Emma limping back over to her desk. Concern flashes across the brunette's face as she quickly sets the two coffees and bag of diner food on Emma's desk, rushing over to her side. "Emma, what happened? Are you alright? You're limping!"

"It's fine." Emma says lightly, trying to shrug Ruby's arm off from around her shoulders. "Ruby, I said I'm _fine_."

"Emma. I'm not kidding around. From what I can tell from your limp, your ankle is probably really swollen. Can you please let me take a look at it?"

Emma rolls her eyes at Ruby's caring tone. She begrudgingly gives in as Ruby guides her to the desk chair. The brunette kneels down in front of her, rolling up her yoga pants.

Ruby gasps. "Emma! What happened?" She says as she sees the gauze wrapped around Emma's calf.

"It's really nothing Ruby, it's just a scrape."

"That's not just a scrape." Ruby says sternly. "Emma, it's bleeding through the bandages. And you put them on pretty heavy it looks like. So that's definitely more than a scrape." Emma looks down and realizes that Ruby is right. The white gauze is slowly turning red, and although Emma's not too squeamish, she cringes at the thought of re-dressing her leg. "Emma, what happened to you last night?" Ruby says softly.

Emma scratches her head sheepishly. "Well, I got the disturbance call, right? And I was in this alleyway and there was a wild animal that chased after me, so I had to jump over a fence. Which is why I have these." Emma says, holding up her gauze-wrapped hands.

"But what about your leg? Did you get bitten?"

Emma is quiet for a moment, then nods. Ruby looks up at the blonde, studying her.

"Emma, I need you to tell me what kind of animal it was." Ruby says seriously. "Right now."

Emma rolls her eyes again. "It honestly doesn't hurt that much, it's not that big of a deal. It was just a little scuffle. I've had much worse, I'll tell you that much. Nothing I can't deal with."

"I'm not joking around Emma!" The brunette says abruptly. "So please, just tell me what type of animal hurt you."

Emma pauses, "It was a wolf or something," the blonde mumbles.

Ruby sucks in a sharp breath. "Emma, what the hell! You need to tell me these things! I can't believe this," she shakes her head incredulously, "Emma, do you know what this means?"

Emma shakes her head slowly, eyes widening in apprehension as she waits for Ruby's explanation.

The brunette pauses for a moment before closing her eyes tight in disbelief. _"Fuck."_

* * *

**A/N: I'm guessing you guys know where this is headed by now. It may be a little different than you might expect though! Feel free to speculate **:)

**I really appreciate all the favorites/follows/comments so far. It means a lot to me as a writer, so thank you for reading. I'm editing chapter 4 at the moment and it will be up as soon as possible.**

**xox - L**


	4. Chapter 4

**Title: Cabin Fever**

**Rating: M  
Summary/Prompt: Once the curse breaks, Regina is transported to a secluded cabin in the forest outside of Storybrooke. Meanwhile, something...peculiar has happened to Emma, who has no choice but to follow her instincts and go to Regina for help. Set a few weeks after the curse breaks. Dark/feral Emma (sometimes). Contains smut in later chapters.**

**A/N: Ugh. This one was hard because I don't like writing MM and I'm itching to write SQ interactions. But there are a few fantasies in here ;) It had to be written! So anyways I hope you enjoy this chapter. It was going to be longer, but it just worked better to have it split. **

* * *

_"I'm not joking around Emma!" The brunette says abruptly. "So please, just tell me what type of animal hurt you."_

_Emma pauses, "It was a wolf or something," the blonde mumbles. _

_Ruby sucks in a sharp breath. "Emma, what the hell! You need to tell me these things! I can't believe this," she shakes her head incredulously, "Emma, do you know what this means?"_

_Emma shakes her head slowly, eyes widening in apprehension as she waits for Ruby's explanation._

_ The brunette pauses for a moment before closing her eyes tight in disbelief. "Fuck."_

* * *

"Ok so... judging from your reaction, does this mean what I think it does?" Emma finally manages to squeak out, disbelief running rampant on her pale features.

"God, Emma. I don't know."

"What do you mean you don't know?!" Emma suddenly yells. She feels hot, then cold, and wonders if she's going to faint. "Ruby, _please_ tell me what's going on."

"I don't know how much help I can be Emma." Ruby murmurs, eyes downcast as a solemn expression flashes through her eyes.

"You're a fucking wolf for christ's sake!" Emma explodes. She stands up out of her desk chair, run her hands through her hair in agitation. "Wouldn't you be able to figure out if someone like... _you_ hurt me?"

Ruby shakes her head, grimacing. "Emma... it's - I just, it's complicated." Ruby pauses, glancing nervously at Emma, who raises an eyebrow for the brunette to continue. "When I was young, Granny made me a cloak. Well, I guess she told me she had made it, but really Rumplestiltskin gave it to her." Malice flashes through Ruby's eyes. "I didn't realize this then, but the cloak was enchanted so that I wouldn't turn into the wolf. But secretly I had stopped wearing it, and not long after there were numerous cases of murder in our village - by a wolf. I feared my life -" Ruby chuckles at this, "but little did I know that it was me."

She looks away sadly, her voice strained. "Emma, I killed _so many people_. And I had no idea what I had done. So later, still in the Fairytale Land, I ran away from that village and ended up finding my mother and her pack of wolves and was taken in by them. But there were arguments, and they were going to attack my friend, so I made a choice and that choice cost me my mothers' life. I killed their pack leader Emma, their top dog, their alpha female or whatever. So all the wolves here remembers me solely for that." She shakes her head. "So I'm sorry, but I won't be able to get information out of anyone."

Emma sinks down in her chair, letting out a strangled groan as she sets her head heavily in her hands. "God, Rubes." She whispers defeatedly, "What am I going to _do_? I mean, the savior shit and now all of this...I'm supposed to _save_ everybody. What happens if people figure out that I'm a wolf? I'll get killed!"

"Well..." Ruby trails off hesitantly. "There's a good chance that nothing happens to you. I mean, I _have_ seen some regular wolves here in the forest, so if you were bitten by an actual wolf, then nothing will happen."

Emma perks up at this new information. "Wait, are you serious?"

Ruby nods.

"So let me get this straight. If I was bitten by someone like you -"

"A werewolf." Ruby interjects.

Emma cringes, "Ah. Yeah. A werewolf, than I will uh, turn into a wolf?"

Ruby nods again.

"But if I was bitten by a regular wolf, then I'll just have a nasty bite for a few weeks," Emma trails off, "God. This shit is so fucked up." She can't believe that this is actually happening to _her_ of all people. She thinks of all the werewolf stories she's read, of people losing their inhibitions and becoming bloodthirsty monsters. She pales at the thought. "Ruby, um, how will I know if I'm a... wolf?" Emma says, her voice strained.

Ruby thinks for a moment. "Well I guess it will be different than when I was a wolf. But I normally get specific symptoms every full moon. So you might have a crazy desire to just move or run. Or you may be agitated easily, your body might be sore, you'll probably be hungry like all of the time, you'll definitely have an increased sense of smell, and... ah..." Ruby trails off, blushing. "Um, and an increased sex drive. Which can get dangerous if you're not careful."

Emma snickers at Ruby's apparent embarrassment. "So it's just like being pregnant pretty much. But uh, how can that be dangerous, the sex drive I mean?"

Ruby blushes again. "Well wolves tend to want to um... mate, for lack of a better term. And mating is very... er... rough, so to speak. And they - we - are normally in heat around the full moon every month. So what I've found is that many wolves mate for life, and once they've found their partner it kind of controls everything they do. And there's a very distinct pull towards that person and you can't really help but follow that pull. So if, um, for hypothetical purposes, you try to push away the attraction, then you might loose control and the wolf will take over and hurt their partner by accident."

Emma smirks. "Sounds like you're speaking from experience."

Ruby blushes fiercely. "I, um. Oh god, Emma, you can't tell anyone! Granny doesn't know I've found a mate and she'll positively flip if she finds out and she'll probably try to plan a wedding or something and _god _that would be so embarrassing!"

"Don't worry Rubes, your secret is safe with me." Emma winks and then sighs, remembering their current task at hand. "Why don't we get to work, huh? There's not much we can do at the moment except to keep thinking of what you know about this or any more information that you have, and hopefully I won't get any symptoms."

"But Em, if you do notice any sort of symptoms or - er, desires of any sort, please tell me, ok? Because if your mate is somewhere in this town then it's imperative that they be protected until you get in control of the wolf."

Emma nods in understanding. She grabs a stack of paperwork she needs to go through and starts flipping through it. She supposes she's still in shock, and she wonders why she's so _calm_ about everything. It's not like her. She could be a goddamn _wolf_ for christ's sake. Part of her imagines that it would be an incredibly interesting experience to be a wolf. But the more rational part has seen and heard of what wolves can do - her leg being the first example - and she doesn't wish for anyone to get hurt.

* * *

After an incredibly long and boring day at the station, Emma makes her way home, slowly limping up the stairs to her and Henry's apartment. When she opens the door though, an unwelcoming sight greets her.

"Emma! Oh darling I missed you!" Her mother is clad in a floral apron and stands over the kitchen countertop, shaping cookies to be put in the oven. Normally, Emma would have reveled in the sight and her heart would have overflowed with familial love and comfort. But at the end of a long and frustrating day, all Emma wants to do is go to sleep. But her saccharinely sweet mother has taken over her kitchen and is making fucking _cookies_ and for some reason Emma just wants a switch to turn off the entire world. But she can't. So the frustrated blond takes a deep breath as she takes off her jacket, schooling her features before she talks to her mother.

"Hi M&M." Her mothers' smile sinks at this. Emma can't help but feel a little guilty, but there is no_ way_ that she can call Mary Margret Mom. It feels too strange using that term with her old roommate and best friend.

"Oh Emma, how are you? How was work?"

Emma puts on a tense smile. "It was fine, nothing new," She decides to tell Mary Margret about her injuries before the brunette finds out herself. "I uh, got a little scraped up," she lifts up her hands and rolls her bad ankle. "But I'll be fine, I just tripped."

"Oh Emma." Mary Margret clucks. "I bet you we could get Blue to heal you?"

Emma immediately disagrees. "Ah. Nope. That's totally fine, I can heal on my own." She says quickly, still not used to the fact that _magic_ actually exists.

The brunette frowns. "But Emma, you need to get better! There's so much to do and you need to help with all the preparations and -"

Emma visibly pales. Preparations cannot be a good thing. "Preparations for what?" She asks suspiciously.

Her mother brightens. "Well for the ball of course! Oh gosh, I'm so excited! Didn't Henry tell you? It's going to be so _grand_ and our whole family will be there, and we can find you a consort and we can go get dresses fitted and -"

"No." Emma says suddenly. She absolutely _refuses_ to go to a legitimate _ball_ of all things. Doesn't the brunette know her better than that? "I'm not going." She says stubbornly.

Mary Margret bites her lip. "Oh, but Emma, it will be so much fun. Just think of all the people that will come!"

"I'm not going." Emma says, finality apparent in her voice. "You can't make me." She adds childishly after a momentary pause.

"Emma," Mary Margret says firmly, "We've been planning this. You are going and that's that."

Emma closes her eyes shut in disbelief. She cannot believe that this woman would come into her kitchen and force her to go to a fucking _ball. _She can feel familiar tendrils of anger clouding her thoughts. She takes a deep breath, "I'm not going. And I want to be alone right now _Mother_, so you can see yourself out."

Mary Margret flinches as Emma uses the term in anger. She opens her mouth as if to say something, then closes it and frowns. "Ok," she says quietly, "This discussion isn't over though. I'll talk to you in the morning. I'm going to put these," she says as she motions to the uncooked cookies, "in the oven, and you can take them out when the timer goes off. Oh, and Henry wanted to stay with us tonight because he and David are going on a ride early in the morning. I just thought I'd let you know."

Emma nods slightly and storms off to her room, her eyes flashing in anger. She feels childish, but she supposes that Mary Margret brings that out in her. She's a fucking _adult_, and she should be treated like one.

* * *

When she hears the front door softly click shut, Emma sighs in relief. _Finally_. She walks over to her closet and slowly begins to undress, mindful of her injuries. She throws on grey sweatpants and an old red t-shirt and spreads herself out on her bed. She groans in frustration. Emma still can't wrap her head around that fact that she fought a fucking _dragon_, that her son _died_, that true love's kiss is a legitimate thing, and that her parents are the ultimate legendary lovers. Who rule a goddamn _kingdom_. She can't believe she's admitting this though, but she doesn't want parents right now. They lost her 28 years ago when they gave her up for adoption. _And nothing can change that,_ Emma thinks petulantly. She was abandoned by the people that should have been the ones to love her the most, and she isn't going to forgive them that easily.

Emma just wants everything to go back to they way they were before. When Mary Margret was just her roommate, when David was just a stupid crush of Mary Margret's, when Regina was here, when there weren't trolls and giants and kings and queens and - Emma sits up with a start. _Regina_. Emma's not keeping track, of course, she's _definitely_ not keeping track, but it has been five and a half days since Regina's disappearance at the hospital. She supposes that before the apple turnover, she and Regina were possibly becoming... friends.

The first day or so after the curse Emma was in a blind rage over Regina's actions towards Emma and Henry. But now that Emma has had a few days to process everything she feels much more calm. She really does believe she understands Regina. She doesn't _want_ to, but she can't stop thinking about the intense pain in the brunette's eyes when she realized what had happened to her - their - son.

She cringes as she remembers their forceful exchange in the hospital utility closet. _I hope she's ok._ Emma thinks sadly. She wonders what Regina's doing right now, where she is or who she's with. And Emma would be lying if she said she wasn't worried. Who wouldn't be? Emma rolls her eyes and scoffs at herself. Well Henry, for one. And Mary Margret. And David. And the rest of this fucking fairytale town.

Concern bubbles uneasily in her stomach. Emma's not used to worrying about how other's feel. Her whole life has been about her, about how to survive to the next paycheck, how to get her next meal. But now there's her _son_, and her _parents_, and Emma doesn't want to believe in any of this magic stuff but she _has _to.

To be honest, Emma is so completely sick of it. Everyone in her family is being a pretentious asshole at the moment, and Emma is done. Completely done. She wishes she could escape, she wishes she could just run away, but she knows that that is not who she is anymore. She ditched that person long ago upon finding Henry - or upon Henry finding her.

* * *

Emma's in the shower the next night when it happens for the first time. She's washing her body, thinking about the satisfaction she once got from angering the mayor when she cut a branch on her apple tree, when she feels a flash of heat. She gasps as it rebounds throughout her entire body, lingering in her most sensitive areas. Feeling the sudden arousal encompass her mind, she lets out a sigh, giving in as she runs her hands over her smooth, wet skin, traveling up taut stomach and over her breasts.

A smirk returns to her face as she imagines the Mayor coming back to the town to see Emma's parents and other royals in charge. She would storm into the town hall in her tight black pant suit and dark red shirt, eyes sparkling with anger, an unforgiving and dangerous smile gracing her flawless features.

Emma's breath is coming faster now and she moves one hand down to her center, lazily circling her swollen clit as she leans against the cool tile wall. _God_, she thinks lustfully, jolts of pleasure traveling through her body. _That smirk. And those shirts with the buttons_. Emma hasn't been this aroused in god knows how long. Since the breaking of the curse she's been too busy to let loose, and there isn't really anyone in the town that she's too attracted to. Except for Regina, when she's not being a heartless bitch. Flawless, but heartless.

Emma suddenly jolts out of her fantasy, freezing as she realizes the direction of her thoughts. _Flawless? Regina Mills? The Mayor? _Emma closes her eyes tightly, trying to rid herself of Regina's smirk, and her sexy walk and - _Sexy? What the hell? _Emma thinks. In no way does she believe Regina to be sexy. Well at least not now. Not while she's in the shower having some fantasy about ... the mayor? Emma shakes her head uneasily, guilt setting low in her stomach.

She removes her hand and quickly washes her hair, turning off the water and grabbing a towel to wrap around her body. Her breath comes short and when she glances at herself in the clearing mirror, she can tell that she's _very_ flushed. She groans in embarrassment. But it's not like anyone will know what she's thinking. Emma tells herself that it will _never_ happen again, she will never let her thoughts stray that far from reality. Because she and the Mayor? That is definitely not reality. There is no way in _hell _Regina would _ever_ harbor anything but resentment for the blond.

Emma knows they have a ridiculous amount of chemistry, but none of it is good chemistry, she thinks sullenly. It may be electrifying, but it's bad all the same. They are always hurting each other, always wanting to bring each other down, and Emma would be lying if she said she never found pleasure in angering Regina.

Emma quickly throws on a long sleeve shirt and a pair of sweat pants. It's winter now, and her apartment seems to stay at one temperature, no matter how high the heat is turned up.

She walks back to the bathroom, grabbing her brush. She stands in front of the mirror, watching the black bristles run through wet and snarled blonde curls. She glances at her pale features, her eyes still wide. She's throughly shaken up by what had happened a few minutes before. She's _never_ thought of the powerful mayor as anything but that - powerful. Regina is her sons' other mother, not some object of her fantasies.

But through the guilt Emma is still worried. No one has seen Regina, and no one seems to want - or need - to look for her. _But maybe I will_. With that thought, Emma slowly fades into sleep, the alluring mayor still on her mind.

* * *

**A/N: I honestly don't like Henry, so he's barely going to be in this, apart from Emma and Regina talking about him and maybe an occasional dialogue between him and Emma. He's a total asshole to Regina and stirs up way too much shit. So put aside your disbeliefs and just believe that Regina and Emma are too busy thinking about each other to think about Henry ;). That may change wayyyy in the future though if I decide to continue this past what I have already planned out. **

**Anyways, thanks for reading, next chapter should be up soon, if everything goes as planned :)**

**Oh, and Happy late Thanksgiving (aka food day) to all of those who celebrated it. Hope you ate some great pie!**

**xox - L**


	5. Chapter 5

**Title: Cabin Fever**

**Rating: M  
Summary/Prompt: Once the curse breaks, Regina is transported to a secluded cabin in the forest outside of Storybrooke. Meanwhile, something...peculiar has happened to Emma, who has no choice but to follow her instincts and go to Regina for help. Set a few weeks after the curse breaks. Dark/feral Emma (sometimes). Contains smut in later chapters.**

* * *

**A/N: Hey guys. I'm really, really sorry for the wait. I wanted to get this posted ****_way_**** sooner but life kicked in and I got super sick and was in bed for a week straight and couldn't concentrate on writing (instead I decided to re-read the first few HP books). This chapter was originally SUPER long, so I had to split it up. It's still the longest chapter i've ever written though. Props to me! The next chapter will be up tomorrow once I wrap it up.**

**Also apologizing for the lack of Swan Queen interactions so far. Keep in mind that there is a span of two weeks between the moment the curse breaks and the moment Emma knocks on Regina's door. So we'll see our two lovely ladies together in chapter 7, if all goes according to plan.**

**I hope you like it.**

* * *

_Emma quickly throws on a long sleeve shirt and a pair of sweat pants. It's winter now, and her apartment seems to stay at one temperature, no matter how high the heat is turned up._

_She walks back to the bathroom, grabbing her brush. She stands in front of the mirror, watching the black bristles run through wet and snarled blonde curls. She glances at her pale features, her eyes still wide. She's throughly shaken up by what had happened a few minutes before. She's never thought of the powerful mayor as anything but that - powerful. Regina is her sons' other mother, not some object of her fantasies._

_But through the guilt Emma is still worried. No one has seen Regina, and no one seems to want - or need - to look for her. _But maybe I will._ With that thought, Emma slowly fades into sleep, the alluring mayor still on her mind._

* * *

The next few days pass in a quiet blur. Emma tries her damned hardest not to let her thoughts stray to the missing brunette. She immerses herself in her work once more, only coming home to spend some time with Henry and to sleep. She avoids Mary Margret and David as much as she can, not wanting to discuss any plans for future family affairs.

She's constantly tired, and she reasons it's because of her job and the stress that comes with a sudden family. But she hasn't been sleeping well either. She's spent the past few nights tangled up in her bed sheets, unable to sleep, an unfamiliar anxiety settling deep in her stomach.

Emma knows, deep down, that it's all because of Regina. The elusive brunette's lack of presence has left Emma unsettled, and she can't stop worrying about her. And all of this time has given Emma room - too much room - to think. And think. And think more about what Regina is making her feel, because for Emma, everything is just too confusing at the moment.

She's not sleeping anymore, she's uncomfortably agitated almost all of the time, and she swears that she has a cold coming on. And even when she does finally fall asleep, she wakes from shallow dreams in a cold sweat, and then is unable to fall back asleep. She's tried sleeping pills, listening to music, sleeping with covers off, and with covers on; but nothing has worked. Emma's frustrated - which is an understatement - and she doesn't know how to make herself _un_-frustrated. She is _supposed_ to be the Savior, to make everybody happy. _But_, she thinks as she burrows deeper into her comforter, dreading the sleepless night ahead of her, _what about _my_ happiness?_

* * *

Emma wakes up, groggily shaking her head, her throat sore and her nose stuffed. She had another... dream last night, if you could call it that. _It was more like a memory_, Emma thinks.

She clearly remembers the way the brunette looked when she first brought Henry to her doorstep, eyes full of pain and disbelief. Emma hasn't thought about that day in a _very_ long time, and doesn't know why her subconscious chose last night to bring it up. She shrugs, then throws on a clean pair of jeans and a long-sleeved shirt, exiting her bedroom to wake up Henry.

She slowly opens his door. "Hey, kid. Time to wake up, bud." She says softly. They've fallen into a routine, and Emma's not sure how she feels about the domesticity of it all. She sure isn't ready to be a mother, or to even _have_ a mother, but she knows it's something she can't escape now. She smiles halfheartedly as Henry gets out of bed, making his way into the kitchen.

Emma follows, entering the kitchen. She grabs a few bagels and puts them in the toaster, yawning as she does so. She looks up at Henry, raising an eyebrow as she sees him bite his lip, something obviously on his mind.

"What's that look for, kid?"

"Um, nothing, I'm just kind of worried about you, I guess. Are you sick or something?"

Emma's eyes widen in surprise. "It's probably just a morning thing," she says. "Haven't been sleeping too much. But worried about me? How so?"

Henry offers a small shrug. "Well, you're working all of the time and I've noticed that you're super tired." He pauses then looks up at her sheepishly. "Um, and so there's this trip that the school is doing that leaves in a few days and I was wondering if I could go? It's a really cool camping trip and it's for two weeks. And Grandpa's a supervisor and I think Grandma might go to! I figured that you could have some time to get rest and catch up on work without worrying about me?"

Emma smiles softly. As hard as being a mother is, she is proud of her son for thinking of her like he does. She just wishes he would see how he has been treating his other mother. With a small sigh, Emma smiles at Henry. "Sure, you can go. Do you need me to sign any forms?"

With this, Henry's eyes light up. He jumps out of his chair and hugs Emma tight around her waist. "Thanks Ma! I'll go get them right now." He says, racing off into his room. Emma winces. She's not used to him calling her 'Ma,' but she knows there is nothing she can do about it.

She stretches, then finishes preparing their breakfast, glancing at the clock on the kitchen stove.

"Oh, shit," she mumbles. "Henry! We're gonna be late!" She yells at the boy in the other room, hearing a muffled shout followed by a crash.

"Sorry, I'm coming! I'll be there in a sec, Ma."

Emma grabs her keys and jacket and tells Henry she'll be waiting in the car. She opens their front door, and winces as the biting winter air surrounds her. _Fuck_, she thinks,_ it's cold as shit. _She was supposed to go to a couple of the shops around town today and check their external security systems, but she supposes she can do that on another day, on a _warmer_ day.

Emma jumps into her car and starts it when she sees Henry sprinting down the walkway. He clambers in the car and grins up at Emma. "It's cold enough to snow today!" He exclaims, and Emma can't help but smile at the childish joy radiating off of him.

"It might, so we'll make sure we pack you extra warm clothes. When do you leave for your trip again? I can get some last minute stuff for you today if you need anything."

Henry glances down at the papers in his hand. "Um... we leave on Wednesday morning." He says, a large grin adorning his face.

Emma nods in contemplation. Today is Monday, so that gives her two more days until she has all the time in the world to herself. For two weeks. "Hey, kid. Did you say that both Mary and - uh, I mean your Grandparents are going?"

Henry nods excitedly, and Emma lets out a breath she hasn't realized she's been holding in.

* * *

Emma walks into the station, grimacing with discomfort as her tight jeans rub against her bandaged calf. _Should've worn leggings,_ she thinks. Her whole body has been aching and her leg is hurting, but she hasn't been noticing it too much because of how busy she is.

She sits down at her desk, murmuring a greeting to Ruby who is already there, talking animatedly on the phone with someone, curling the phone cord around her fingers. The brunette decided to work part-time at both the diner and the station, and Emma sincerely appreciates the help.

She waits until Ruby's off the phone to talk to her. "Hey Rubes." The brunette yawns and returns the greeting. "What have we got today?"

Ruby rummages through the paper on her desk, and Emma is surprised at how small the stack is. Normally they have loads of paperwork and forms to fill out - not to mention disturbance calls and so-called 'emergencies' - but it seems like today will be a lighter day.

"Um..." Ruby says, still flipping through the papers, "It's actually not that much. Just some construction stuff, security for some events, relocation of stray animals...Oh!" Ruby pauses, glancing up at Emma nervously. "Uh, that reminds me. Any...news on your, uh - condition?" She asks the blonde.

Emma frowns, "Um. Well I'm not a werewolf?"

Ruby rolls her eyes then grins. "Duh, Emma. I can see that. But I meant like... uh do you remember what I said last time? About the attractions and thoughts and stuff? And body changes and stuff like that?"

Emma cringes, trying to hold back the blush she knows will surely make an appearance.

She immediately thinks of Regina. She's not attracted to her. No way. She's not her _mate_, and she's not going to get all... wolf-y over her. But she has been feeling _off_, in a sense. But it's probably just the winter flu making its rounds.

Emma shakes her head. "Um, nope. Nada. Nothing at all." She flashes a smile at Ruby, hoping to convince her. Because Regina is just Regina, and nothing else. Definitely nothing else.

But Ruby just raises an eyebrow. "Ok, well let me know, 'kay Em? It's important, you know."

Emma nods. She knows, really, she does. But she's the goddamn_ savior_. If she can save a town, than she can control herself. With a sigh she leaves Ruby's desk and walks over to her own, settling in for a slow day.

* * *

Emma's just unwrapping her grilled cheese sandwich for lunch when her phone rings. She groans loudly in protest as she glances down at the phone screen, seeing an incoming call from Mary Margret.

She sighs, then answers her phone reluctantly, making sure she sounds happy enough to talk to the bubbly schoolteacher.

"Hey Snow- uh, Mom." Emma cringes. She still isn't used to calling the brunette that. They're the same age, for christ's sake. "What's up?" She says, idly picking at a few pieces of lint on her jeans.

"Hi! Um, how are you, Emma?"

"I'm good. Why'd you call?" Emma says, leaning back in her chair, putting her feet on the desk. Her leg is irritating her. She should probably change her bandages soon.

"I was wondering if you wanted to get lunch today?" She asks eagerly.

Emma cringes. "I'm sorry but Ruby actually just brought me lunch from the diner, and I've got a lot of work to do." She pauses for a second before adding, "Um, I really am sorry Mary - um, Mom. How about we do another day instead?"

"Oh. That's fine Emma. I just wanted to make sure Henry's told you about the trip?"

"Mmhm."

"Good, well I was wondering if you wanted me and your father to take him tonight instead? Because we leave pretty early in the morning. So it might be easier that way."

"Oh, sure! That'd actually be great, M&M," Emma says, relieved that she won't have to wake up early. She's _definitely_ not a morning person. "Thanks, really."

"Of course, Emma," The brunette pauses on the other line. "We'll miss you, you know." She says. "Why don't we do something together as a family when we all get back?"

Emma feels a soft pang in her heart. She's never had people _miss_ her before. Ever. So this? Well it's more than welcome. It'll definitely take time getting used to, but she loves it either way. "I know Mom," she says softly. "I'll miss you guys too. And sure, we can plan something later."

When she hangs up, Emma suddenly thinks of Regina's reaction, before she quickly realizes that Regina's not _here. _She suppresses a growl of frustration.

Regina ran away, and left Emma in Storybrooke. _Wait_, Emma thinks in surprise, _Left _me_? Since when did it become me? _She hates that she thinks of the missing brunette like this. Because she's _toxic_ and they're so _bad_ for each other. But Emma can't help but wish to see her again. She's gotten her hopes up multiple times whenever she hears Ruby's heels clicking on the floor, similar to that of Regina's. So she supposes she does... think about Regina. Maybe more than normal. Possibly. But it's not... well, caring, is it?

Emma gives an exasperated sigh. She's frustrated and tired and she just wishes she could shut off her mind sometimes.

"Hey, boss, you alright? All that work catching up with you?" Ruby jokes.

Emma gives her a weak laugh. "Yeah, yeah, you caught me." She says, her mind frantically thinking about all of the possible locations of the missing Mayor.

* * *

"Hey kid. Get in the car," She smiles up at Henry through the rolled-down passenger window. "We've gotta get you ready for your camping trip."

Henry grins as he climbs in the car, clutching his backpack and a woolen hat. "Hi Ma! Do we have sleeping bags? Because Grandma said we'll need one."

Emma's mind freezes for a second before she recovers. "Ah. Right. A sleeping bag."

Henry rolls his eyes at her. "It's fine, they'll probably have extras. Don't worry about it."

Emma sighs. She knows she's not quality parent material. And she's ok with that at times, but she just hates when it shows. She's not like Regina, who's bound to have piles of unused equipment stacked in their garage or basement. "What about your mom?" Emma asks suddenly. "Do you think that she'll have anything you could use?"

Henry looks confused. "What do you mean? I thought you said we didn't have anything?"

Emma feels a burst of anger flash through her. _Of course. _"Henry." She says as calmly as she can, fixing Henry with a stern glare, "I'm talking about your _mother_."

"But Emma, _you're _my mom."

Emma resists the urge to stop the car and give Henry a very firm talking-to. She's heard that line too many times.

"Henry. Listen to me. She is your mother just as much as I am. She raised you for _eleven_ years. I met you less than a year ago. And no matter what you think, she loves you just as much as I do. Probably even more."

She glances over at Henry as she continues driving the short distance home. He is silent for a moment, then murmurs _ok_, quietly resuming his observations of life outside the car.

And their conversation is finished.

* * *

Emma pulls into their driveway, glancing again at Henry. "So did Snow tell you what's going on?" She says softly as she turns off the car.

Henry looks up at her, confused. "Um, no? What's happening?"

"They're going to pick you up tonight, ok? Because you guys are gonna leave pretty early in the morning."

He nods excitedly, undoing his seatbelt and opening the car door. "Then let's get ready!" He exclaims.

Emma chuckles. "Henry, they're not picking you up until eight. Thats..." she glances down at her phone screen. "Five hours from now, so calm your horses." She says, following her son up to their apartment and unlocking the door for them. "What do you need to bring? Do you have a list?" She asks as they enter the apartment.

"Um... yeah, it's in my backpack, let me get it." He says, setting his backpack down on the couch and rummaging through it. "Here!"

Once he hands her the list Emma skims it, happy to see that most of the items on it are clothing and toiletries. They have plenty of those.

"Hey Henry, I'm gonna go on a short run, alright? So why don't you get together the stuff on this list that you can find. I might stop by your Mom's house, see if she has anything else you might need." Emma knows that her trip will be pointless. But she needs an excuse to check the house. No one has seen the ex-Mayor since the curse has broke, and as much as Emma misses her - _misses her?_ - she's glad the brunette has escaped what would have most likely been an unfortunate imprisonment.

Henry looks up at her curiously, then nods in quiet understanding and races off towards his room, eager to start packing.

Emma watches him run off, then makes her way to her room. She changes into a pair of running tights and a long-sleeve t-shirt, grabbing a pair of socks and her running shoes. She slips them on and ties the laces tightly, wincing at the slight pain from her ankle.

She yells to Henry that she's leaving and tells him to lock the door behind her. She opens the door, grabbing a hair tie from around her wrist to put up her unruly curls. She takes a deep breath and slowly begins to jog, making her way down the driveway and towards the street Regina's house is on. It's a fifteen minute jog from her house, so she uses the time to think.

She knows Regina won't be there, but she can't help the small flame of hope that flickers in her stomach as her sneaker-clad feet pound repetitively on the pavement. She imagines Regina's reaction to her arrival. She would open the door, clad in a tight pencil skirt and blazer, smirking at the blonde's disheveled state. But then she would invite Emma in, get her a glass of water, maybe a neck massage... or they could _exercise_ together... Emma's eyes flash at the possibility. But then she shakes her head. She's being _utterly _stupid and unreasonable. The mayor's won't be at her house. She's probably been gone for days, and as the white house comes into view, Emma's thoughts are confirmed.

Who _knew _things could get so... _dirty_ in the mayor's absence? The grass is uneven and obviously heavily treaded on, trash litters the front lawn, and Emma thinks those are _eggs_ that mar the side of the once-pristine house.

With a heavy sigh, Emma makes sure to walk on the pathway as she makes her way to the front door, eyeing the vandalism with distaste and anger. She makes sure that she will remember to add it to the sheriff's list of crimes to examine tomorrow at work.

She walks up the few steps and knocks on the door; once, twice, three times.

No answer.

She had worked up a sweat on the way over, but now she's beginning to cool down, considerably so, and her breath is coming out in small puffs of white.

Emma shifts nervously from one foot to the other, wrapping her arms around her quickly cooling body. _Why did I even come here? _She had gotten her hopes up, and had imagined the mayor opening the door and inviting her in. Maybe they would have exchanged a few brief words about Henry, or possibly the camping trip. She feels a desperate need to find Regina, to apologize for absolutely everything and absolutely nothing.

Emma is so fed up with the everyone ignoring Regina's absence that she doesn't care what Regina's reaction to her would be. She can punch her or slap her or yell at her for all the blonde cares. Because Regina presence brought an overwhelming relief to Emma before the curse. She was a constant. An incessant individual that Emma couldn't ignore. And the blonde didn't realized that until she was gone.

Emma glances to the garage, wondering if she should peak in to see if Regina has any equipment Henry could use. But although breaking and entering might be the blonde's style, she knows it's not Regina's.

With a defeated sigh, Emma turns around dejectedly, slowly making her way down the dirtied brick walkway. She begins jogging once more, making her way back to the apartment where Henry is.

* * *

After arriving at home and showering quickly, Emma orders pizza, figuring that she and Henry can share one last meal and movie time before he leaves on his trip.

After putting Henry's movie of choice into the DVD player, Emma sinks down on their couch, feeling a familiar ache in her bones. Henry is quick to join her, curling up against her body.

Emma wraps her arm around him, surprised at the amount of affection he's showing. He hasn't been too touchy-feely with her, but she understands. He's the son of the savior and the grandson of Snow White and Prince Charming, so she gets that he wants to seem strong. But Emma welcomes the attention either way, and lets him snuggle closer into her side.

They watch the movie in a comforting silence._ It's nice_, Emma thinks, _to be able to share something so simple with somebody_. She's thinking about the movie, of course, and the comfort she finds in her son, but she can't stop herself from thinking about sharing Henry with Regina. Because when the curse broke, they were close to sharing him. They were almost there, and Emma had thought that with time, they would have possibly become something close to... friends. But now, Emma wonders if Regina would ever trust her enough to fall asleep in the same room as her. After all, they had spent close to a year trying to remove each other from one another's lives.

As the end credits roll, Emma runs her hands absentmindedly through Henry's hair. He looks so innocent in the dimmed light, his face lit by the glowing screen. She fleetingly imagines Regina in his position. Curled up next to her, half asleep, her breath coming slowly and evenly. She would look beautiful. Relaxed. Peaceful even.

"Hey bud, you gotta get up, it's time to go to Snow's." Emma whispers, softly shaking Henry.

Henry groans and curls up tighter on the couch.

Emma chuckles. Her son is cute, she's got to give him that. "Seriously kid, we told your grandma we'd be there at eight. It's eight-fifteen now. I've got your bags, so just get dressed and come out to the car."

With a sleepy sigh, Henry pushes himself off the couch and silently heads to his room.

Emma grabs his bags and walks out to her car, unlocking the door and throwing his bags inside. She opens the passenger door for Henry, who slips inside, rubbing his eyes tiredly.

"You alright kiddo?" She asks as she sits down in the driver's seat, shutting the car door behind her. She slips her key into the ignition and starts the car.

Henry nods slowly, then pauses. "Hey Emma?"

Emma is stunned for a quick moment, her eyes widening in surprise at the Henry's use of 'Emma.' "Uh, yeah?" She says.

"Um, do you think Regina - um, my mom is ok?" He asks softly, his voice timid and hopeful.

Emma feels her heart melt. So he _has _been thinking of his other mother, even if he hasn't shown it.

She glances over at him and he meets her eyes, concern evident in his young face.

"I really hope so." She whispers.

* * *

**A/N: Yup. So Emma's got some were(kind of)wolf-y stuff going on, Regina is oblivious/nonexistent, and everyone is still annoying. Oh, and I sent Henry and the two idiots on a long camping trip so I don't have to worry about any of them (thanks to ShadowClub for the suggestion in his/her comment, originally I was just going to ignore Henry, Snow, and Charming). Hope you don't mind. I want to focus more on Regina and Emma and their relationship, chemistry, and developing thoughts towards each other. Because that's what really matters! ;) **

**Lots of love, and sorry for the long A/N's. They'll be shorter next time, I promise.**

**xox - L**

**(By the way, did you know OUAT is going to go on a 12-week hiatus after the next episode? I'm gonna cry. But I can use that time to start watching Rizzoli and Isles. Finally!)**


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